First Date
by Nytel
Summary: Ronon and Dr. Keller go on their date. Sequel to 'Dating and Science Don't Mix'. Mild spoilers for 320, but nothing regarding the main plot.


**First Date**

Jen Keller rubbed sweaty palms on the legs of her jeans while scanning the hallways for Ronon. She never would have guessed that his visit to the infirmary the day before would lead to a lunch date, but it had. She wasn't even quite sure how it had happened. But that didn't mean she was regretting agreeing to the date, quite the opposite in fact. Ever since her first day in Atlantis she'd had a thing for Ronon. He was, well… hot.

He was so much more than that too. Originally she hadn't thought there would be much past the sexy, rough exterior, but he'd proven her wrong. The more she got to know him, the more she realized he was everything she wanted in a man: funny, intelligent, strong, caring, sweet, and of course, good-looking.

Jen felt her face flush and she took a couple deep breaths to calm down. A quick glance at her watch told her she still had a few more minutes to wait. She'd come early, because… well, she couldn't quite remember why. It had seemed like a good idea when she'd left the infirmary, but now she almost wished she hadn't. With nothing to occupy her while she waited, the only thing she could do was think.

She started tapping one foot against the floor, but stopped when she realized how stupid it would make her look. Realistically he could be there at any moment, and the last thing Jen wanted was for Ronon to catch her looking like an idiot.

A few excruciatingly long minutes later, Ronon rounded the corner. Apart from his arm being in a sling, he looked the same as he always did. He caught her eye and smiled as he closed the distance between them. She felt her face get warm, but she still returned the gesture.

"Hi," Ronon said as he stopped in front of her.

"Hi," she responded, not knowing what else to say.

They stood there for about ten seconds, neither one doing or saying anything until Jen broke the silence. "How's your arm?"

Ronon shrugged with his good shoulder. "It's fine. So, uh, do you want to get some lunch?" He pointed towards the entrance to the mess.

Jen nodded. "Sure."

* * *

Ronon swiped his hand over the sensor at the door and gestured for Jen to precede him into the room. She gave him a small smile and he felt his heart speed up.

As they waited in the lunch line Ronon found himself becoming more and more nervous. He still had no idea what he was supposed to talk to Jen about. Sheppard had been no help whatsoever, Teyla hadn't had an answer for him, and he wasn't even going to start thinking of how unhelpful McKay had been.

Realizing they were nearing the front of the line, Ronon grabbed two trays with his good arm and handed one to Jen.

"Thanks."

He simply nodded and began loading food onto his tray. It was a little difficult since he was only able to use one arm, but he managed. Usually he would use his injured arm too, but with Jen watching he figured he shouldn't.

Jen picked up her tray, moving away from the line, and Ronon followed. He watched her as she scanned the mess looking for an empty spot. He quickly looked too, and although he didn't find a table, there was something that caught his eye. John and Teyla were sitting at a table in the back corner. Sheppard was staring at Ronon and Jen with a curious look on his face. When he saw that Ronon was looking at him, he mouthed something, but Ronon couldn't make it out. Teyla appeared to be telling him to stop, but John persisted.

Ronon turned to Jen. "Hey," he said quietly. "Let's eat somewhere else."

She turned to look at him with a confused glance. "Why? I'm sure there's an empty table around here somewhere."

"It's not that." Instinctively Ronon glanced back at John and Teyla. Jen must have noticed.

"Oh," she said. "Sure."

Ronon led her to one of the rooms that opened onto the ocean. There were many, and even though they were incredibly beautiful, they were rarely used. At least this way when he made a fool of himself there would only be one witness.

Ronon took a seat on the bench in the middle of the room and Jen sat beside him, setting her tray down on her other side. "So…" She turned to look at him. "This is nice."

He nodded, wishing he could think of something, anything, more to say. For a few minutes they just sat there, not talking as they stared out at the ocean. "We should eat," Ronon stated. He bit his tongue, but it was too late, the words were out. He felt like an idiot.

"Right." Jen grabbed her sandwich off the tray and took a bite. Ronon did too, disgusted to find that he'd grabbed a tuna one by mistake. Though he supposed it didn't really matter, because he was sure that just about anything would taste like leather in his mouth.

They ate their entire meal in silence. Just as Ronon was about to write their date off as the worst one in history, the door opened behind them.

They turned around to find Rodney walking in. He was so busy muttering to himself and playing with his hand held computer that he didn't notice them until Jen spoke up. "Hello, Dr. McKay."

Ronon almost wanted to laugh when Rodney jumped. "Sorry, didn't realize there were…" He caught sight of Ronon and glared. "Oh. It's you."

Ronon sighed. Apparently McKay hadn't gotten over it yet.

"I'm leaving," Rodney said snarkily. "I refuse to be in a room with someone so ignorant and disrespectful." With that he turned on his heel and left.

Jen looked over at Ronon. "What was that about?" She questioned curiously.

Ronon was about to say it was nothing, but an idea struck him. It could be one hell of a conversation starter. Plus, the date couldn't get any worse, right?

By the time he finished telling Jen the story she was laughing uncontrollably. Although Ronon still didn't understand why it was funny, he didn't mind. She didn't make him feel like he was being laughed at, and she looked beautiful.

* * *

Jen took deep breaths trying to control her laughter, but it would only work for a few seconds before she was cracking up again. "I'm sorry," she breathed out, hoping that Ronon didn't think she was laughing at him.

"It's okay."

When she looked up, he was smiling, so she figured everything was all right. Eventually she did calm down, and when she did she noticed that her hand was resting lightly on Ronon's arm. She blushed as she pulled it away.

"We don't have to talk about science you know," Jen said quietly. She couldn't believe that Ronon had been as worried about their date as she'd been, if not more. It made her feel warm inside.

Ronon shrugged, the movement looking slightly awkward because of his shoulder. "It seemed like a good idea yesterday, at least until I asked McKay."

Jen bit the inside of her lip to keep from giggling. "Dr. McKay needs to loosen up."

"What do you mean?"

"It's just every time I've seen him he looks so tense and serious. He probably never stops working."

Ronon shook his head. "He does stop, sometimes. For a while I was trying to teach him how to fight."

Jen felt her eyebrows lift up in surprise. "You mean with bantos rods?"

Ronon nodded, a slight smile slipping onto his face.

"How did that work out?"

"Not well. He's better off sticking with science."

From there the conversation took off. Ronon told Jen about some of the less brilliant things Dr. McKay had done on some of their missions, and Jen told him about some of her coworkers. That led to her talking about how she'd come to be in Atlantis. It wasn't an interesting story, not really, but Ronon seemed genuinely interested. She was just about to tell him why she'd accepted the SGC's offer, when she heard a page come in over the radio.

_"Dr. Keller, please report to the infirmary."_

Looking at her watch Jen saw it was already ten minutes past when she was supposed to be back. She'd gotten so caught up in their date that she'd completely lost track of time.

"I have to go," she said regretfully as she stood up and picked up her lunch tray.

Ronon smiled up at her. "So, I'll see you later?"

He looked so hopeful. "Yes." Jen grinned. "Thank you, Ronon. I had a great time."

"Me too."

She was about to leave, but instead of turning for the door she found herself leaning down. The next thing she knew she'd kissed Ronon. He looked shocked, but not as shocked as she felt. She'd kissed him!

"I gotta go," she said quickly as she turned and left.

The whole way back to the infirmary all she could think about was the kiss.

* * *

Teyla's arm arched wide, and a second later she heard and felt the thump of the bantos rod connecting with John's backside.

"Ow," he complained as he rubbed his sore butt. "Do you really have to do that?"

Teyla lifted one eyebrow. "Perhaps if you had practiced since the last time you would be able to evade such simple attacks."

"I have practiced," John said as he picked up both of his rods from where he'd dropped them on the floor. He began to twirl them in circles, loosening the muscles in his wrists, or else putting off the inevitable.

"You have not," Teyla stated as she lunged forward and attacked. John parried the first three blows, but missed the fourth. Teyla pulled it at the end, enough so that it would not really hurt him, but he would still feel it in the morning.

John dropped his rods again and clutched his stomach. "You have it in for me, don't you?" He asked through pain filled breaths.

Teyla shook her head. "If you had practiced, then this would be a much more enjoyable sparring session for us both."

John didn't even try to lie this time. "How could I practice? I was too busy worrying about Ronon's date."

"Next time, John, think of a better excuse."

He winked at her as he pulled himself back upright. "Hey, it was worth a shot."

Teyla sighed and walked over to the edge of the training room. After stowing the rods in her gym bag, she looked over her shoulder at John. "Perhaps you could practice at least once before next week's session."

He nodded, a smile covering his face. "Sure."

She waited for John to grab his things also, and then they headed for the door. Just as Teyla was about to swipe her hand over the sensor, the door opened and Ronon stepped through. Immediately she noticed that he looked shell shocked, and she felt a surge of sympathy. She had never dated anyone, it was not customary of her people, but she could imagine how horrible it must feel when a date went badly.

She reached over and placed a comforting hand on Ronon's arm. "I am so sorry, Ronon."

John gripped the taller man's shoulder. "It's okay, Big Guy. Women just suck."

Teyla glared at him, but he ignored it.

They shared a confused glance when Ronon ignored both of them and walked over to the bench and took a seat. Perhaps he was more heartbroken than she had originally thought. Before she could think of anything else to say, Ronon looked up at both of them, shock still evident on his face.

"She kissed me."

The End


End file.
